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Brrr! Frigid temps close area schools

MTN
Published 11:09 p.m. CT Jan. 5, 2014

This scene from Shoreview, Minn., on Sunday was similar to that seen in the Twin Lakes Area as the year’s second winter weather event swept into Arkansas.
(Photo:
AP
)

The effect of the second winter weather event to strike the Twin Lakes Area this year will not be as severe, but dangerous wind chill values have closed all area schools, extending the Christmas vacation period by at least one day.

With the National Weather Service announcing a wind chill warning until noon today, followed by a wind chill advisory that lasts until 6 a.m. Tuesday, temperatures predicted to dip into the multiple digits below zero have forced Cotter, Flippin, Mountain Home, Norfork and Yellville-Summit to all cancel classes today.

A wind chill warning means the combination of very cold air and strong winds will create dangerously low wind chill values. This will result in frostbite and lead to hypothermia or death if precautions are not taken.

A wind chill advisory means that very cold air and strong winds will combine to generate low wind chills. This will result in frostbite and lead to hypothermia if precautions are not taken.

Residents that venture outdoors during the advisory period should make sure to wear a hat and gloves.

When Winter Storm Cleon struck the area on Dec. 5-6, a crippling 10-plus inches of ice and snow was dumped, shutting down area schools for six days and creating treacherous conditions on the region’s roadways.

The current storm system may drop up to 4 inches of snow in areas of northern Arkansas, but ice accumulations have been far less than Cleon, though the current temperatures have created life-threatening conditions for those exposed to the elements for any length of time.

Area roads remain hazardous and travel is advised only in the most needed of situations.

As an example, Bulletin reader John Bressett, of Gainesville, Mo., sent an email to the newsroom Sunday stating AR Hwy. 5 from Midway to the state border is “dangerous.”

“A sheet of ice with no sand or salt to be seen. I slid off the road (north) of the Cowboy church and I have been driving on this stuff for over 40 years,” Bressett added. “It is slick.”

Elsewhere in the state, a wind chill advisory is in effect until noon today. The advisory area includes Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Hot Springs, and forecasters say those areas could see wind chill values around zero degrees or colder.